


Peas and Carrots and Things

by tarie



Category: Forrest Gump (1994)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-14
Updated: 2012-10-14
Packaged: 2017-11-16 08:06:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/537310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tarie/pseuds/tarie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Forrest is not a smart man. However, it doesn't mean he's simple.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Peas and Carrots and Things

**Author's Note:**

> This was written as a stream of conscience exercise and character development. The challenge was to "write at least 100 short sentences about your character. The sentences should not connect and should not follow one another in any logical way. The idea of this exercise is to force you to outrun your own thoughts and intelligence and critical mind. Be careful not to be monotonous, using the name of your character or a pronoun to start each sentence." Mistakes are my own.

On a clear night when the stars hang bright and true, Forrest likes to look up at them and figure out which one is Momma looking down on him from Heaven. Peas and carrots are his favorite food, next to chocolate and shrimp (but he doesn't eat them together). Sometimes he wonders how God can be Good when he waited so long to send Jenny far, far away from her daddy's house. Running like the wind blows is easy, but running from things that scare him or don't seem right is hard (unless he's just doing what Jenny told him to do).

A man should treat a girl like he would treat his own momma. Best good friends are hard to come by, so Forrest holds on to them with all that he is. He is not a smart man, but he is a good man. Folks don't appreciate what they got until it's gone, which Forrest thinks is a real big shame. He'll talk to anyone, even if they don't want to listen. The smell of freshly cut grass is one of the best things about this wide world. 

He doesn't like the smell of cigarettes, and he likes the taste of them even less. Just because a man's legs don't work right doesn't mean he's any less of a man. When he was a boy, Momma had a little yellow hat with a black veil with bumble bees stuck all over it, and Forrest used to put that hat on and become a Real Important Bee Catcher or something. Curious George is his most favorite book. Forrest has a permanent welt on the back of his neck from one of them stones Tommy Decatur and his best good friends used to throw at him. Coach Bryant liked to yell a lot. The White House sure is big. Forrest says what he thinks and what he feels because telling the truth is important. There are all sorts of rains.

That nice young man they called the King stayed in his house once, and Forrest showed him how to dance and that grilled peanut butter sandwiches were tons better with bananas inside. Steering a boat is tiring. When the gospel choir sings and dances, Forrest knows God taps his feet. A promise is a promise, and Forrest always keeps his promises. The first time Forrest cried was when his best good friend Bubba died in his arms right there by the water's edge in the country of Viet Nam. Steaks smell good when they're burning. It's best to spend New Year's Eve with a friend.

Ice cream makes everything better. Flex-o-lite paddles aren't as good as the one Forrest has been carrying around for forever or something. The Army is real easy. Forrest once helped Miss Louise with the laundry, only he accidentally turned everything pink and he was so scared Momma was going to be disappointed with him when she found out about it. He would die to protect someone he loved. Although the President suggested he check into that nice hotel called the Watergate, Forrest didn't sleep real well. Forrest learned how to swim when he was two years old. Dr. Pepper is one of his most favorite things in the world.

The desert is hot. Forrest isn't afraid of dying. He doesn't like alcohol, although he did drink warm beer in Viet Nam because it settled his stomach. On warm Spring days, he likes to lay on the ground and name the shapes of the clouds. 'Normal' is his least favorite word. Forrest likes hats because Momma liked hats. The first time he caught a shrimp, Forrest said a silent prayer of thanks to God and Bubba. China is very big.

There isn't anything special about being on a million and one television programs, except for the part where in the Green Room (Why do they call it a Green Room? Most of the time the rooms aren't even _green_.) they got a million or so different sodas and teas and other drinks and snacks as far as the eye can see. Blue is his favorite color.

He would rather run than use a bus to get somewhere. Forrest is more comfortable in a suit than anything else. While he listens to all sorts of music, Forrest likes anything that uses a guitar the best. He hasn't ever seen a movie in a movie theater. Forrest doesn't have a driver's license. One summer, Forrest caught himself over one hundred fireflies. Forrest likes to cook. 

College was hard. Our nation's capital is a big place. Forrest likes to be organized. Whenever he climbs a tree, Forrest feels six again. Momma taught him how to knit. It's more fun to give presents than to receive them. Money isn't important. Forrest doesn't understand why there are things like War. He liked everything about his home economics class except for all the sewing. If he could be a genie for a day and grant wishes, he would give Jenny everything she ever wanted, starting with making her a folk singer. His favorite tv show is _Green Acres_ because the pig is funny.

Forrest loves Jenny, but he doesn't think she believes him when he says he does. He stopped wondering about whether or not Daddy was ever coming back from vacation when he was ten. Whenever he sees fire, Forrest thinks about Viet Nam. Captain Kangaroo's jacket is very maroon. The glass is always half-full.

Forrest probably _could_ eat about a million and a half chocolates but he won't because he likes to share things, especially chocolates. Comfortable shoes are a comfort. He will rescue anyone that needs help (or needs it but doesn't ask for it). He doesn't mind doing all the talking if someone's feeling quiet. 

Company is all right by him. It's real nice when the sun goes down on the bayou. No matter where Forrest goes, Jenny is right there with him. Forrest doesn't mind standing in line for things. When he dreams about who he's going to be, Forrest dreams of himself, just the way he is. It doesn't matter what color folks are; what matters is what's inside. 

God made everybody to be different, and generally Forrest doesn't mind being different. When he was a little boy, he was told his back was as crooked as a politician; Forrest still hasn't seen any crooked politicians – they've always looked real straight to him. 

Forrest doesn't believe in holding grudges. Gossip is something Good People just don't do. When someone asks him for a favor, the word 'no' doesn't ever cross his mind. He still doesn't know where Tex come from. Destiny brought Lieutenant Dan and him together.

Playing ping pong didn't seem like the best way to get world peace, but Forrest didn't mind because he got to travel to the great land of China to play his favorite game.

Forrest is not a violent man, but when someone lays a hand on Jenny he sees red. The United States lost some of its finest young men in the war of Viet Nam.

He thinks about Bubba at least once a day. Because Forrest isn't very good at math, he lets Lieutenant Dan handle all the money; he trusts Lieutenant Dan with everything and anything. The strangest shirt Forrest ever saw was a shirt made out of the American flag that a man was wearing on a stage at our nation's capital. The strongest word Forrest will ever say is 'shoot' because Momma always said she didn't raise her child to talk like he needed a bar of soap to wash out his mouth.

While he doesn't miss college classes one itty bitty bit, Forrest misses playing football. He never learned how to ride a bike; his legs were in braces when everyone else had their daddies teach them how to ride. Forrest likes peanut butter and banana sandwiches best with the crusts cut off.

Because of his allergies, Forrest can't have pets. He can tell a lot about a person by their shoes. 

Forrest still isn't very good with laundry. Sometimes, if he thinks real real hard, Forrest can remember just about any moment from his whole long life.

He won't eat peas without carrots or carrots without peas; it just ain't right otherwise. When Forrest makes his trip to Heaven, he knows the angels are going to look just like Jenny.


End file.
